WAT PHO PHEUAK (1)





Wat Pho Phueak, or the Monastery of the White Bodhi Tree, is a restored ruin in the eastern area of Ayutthaya, in the Phai Ling Sub-district. The ruin is situated within the boundaries of the Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya Provincial Stadium. The ruin can be seen when entering the premises near the monument of Nai Khanom Tom, the father of Thai boxing.


Wat Si Liam stood north, Wat Fai Mai east, Wat Maklam and Wat Maha Thalai south and Wat Khok Phra Non west.


In situ is a single monastic building. The other co-existing structures of the temple, such as a stupa, disappeared with time. (1)


The building was aligned on an east-west axis and made of bricks and mortar. It was rectangular, measuring 8.80 meters wide and 14.90 meters long. The front wall of the building had two entry doors, while the side walls had only a single window on each side


Wat Pho Phueak is on the east-west axis of Wat Dusit - Wat Rerai - Wat Khok Phra Non - Wat Pho Phuaek - Wat Fai Mai.


Based on an interview with Khun Chin near Wihan Satru on 16 March 2016 CE, Wat Pho Phueak is not the original name of this site.


Wat Pho Phueak was, in fact, the site today called Wat Maklam.


The ruins of Wat Pho Phueak are in geographical coordinates: 14° 21' 3.53" N, 100° 35' 50.22" E.





(View of the ruin of Wat Pho Pheuak)



Footnotes:


(1) The Ayutthaya monasteries were sacked and plundered by the Burmese and further dismantled in the reigns of King Rama I and Rama III to reconstruct the Siamese capital in Bangkok. Ayutthaya's temple bricks were also used to strengthen the bed of the Bangkok - Ayutthaya - Lopburi railway track at the end of the 19th century. When, in the last century, the demand for antiques increased, and the amulet markets mushroomed, Ayutthaya's ruins were plundered one more time. During the fifties, witnesses recount, it was common for poor locals in the Ayutthaya area to gather the bricks of the ruins as there was a demand from Bangkok. Trucks and boats from Bangkok collected the bricks at 20 Baht a load.